Orchard Lake St. Mary’s defeated Redford Thurston in the second round of the Division 3 playoffs on Friday night, 62-20.

St. Mary’s used its power running game to pile up 380 yards and took advantage of missed opportunities by Thurston to claim the district title.

The Eaglets (9-2) advance to quarterfinal matchup at home against Linden, which defeated Lapeer East, 33-8, on Friday.

“I thought we had some nice holes to run in tonight,” coach George Porritt said.

Grant Niemiec and Spencer McInnis led the charge for the Eaglets' ground attack. Niemiec had 15 carries for 147 yards and three touchdowns, while McInnis had 13 carries for 109 yards and two touchdowns.

McInnis' 19-yard touchdown run in the first quarter gave the Eaglets their first lead, 7-6 - one they'd never relinquish.

“Well, we started the game off good with a touchdown early in the game,” McInnis said. “We knew we could run the ball on them. We knew we could hit the edges really well.”

Niemiec had a 32-yard touchdown run with 21 seconds left in the half that gave the Eaglets a cushion at halftime, 35-14.

“I try and do my part – my part is to run the ball hard,” Niemiec said. “The half was winding down, and we needed a big play. We ran a quick little trap play, and we sprung it loose.”

Thurston had some bad luck in the first half. A dropped pass in the end zone in the first quarter could have tied the score at 14-14.

Then, St. Mary’s squibbed a kickoff to keep the football away from Eric Wilson, and it hit off an Eagles player that was recovered by Charles Croone for St. Mary’s.

“We were trying to squib it down right and our kicker just didn’t get enough of it,” Porritt said. “We sort of lucked out on that one.”

St. Mary’s defense also kept Thurston from capitalizing on big plays. The Eaglets held the Eagles to 153 yards and five first downs in the game.

Containing Devin Ryles was the game plan for St. Mary’s, and the Eaglets kept him under control.

Ryles went 9-of-13 through the air for 126 yards and two touchdowns. He ran the ball nine times for 21 yards and was sacked three times.

“We focused on getting a push up the middle to get him going sideways,” Porritt said. “He has a nice arm and getting him going sideways helps out a bit. If he goes downhill, you are going to get a headache.”